#HeraeusPeople Story
Courage pays off
Arthur Charlet, Head of Heraeus Medical; Co-President HME
“Sometimes one of the biggest developments starts with a leap in the dark. For me, that was at the beginning of 2020 when I moved from an OpCo to the central M&A and strategy department of the Heraeus Group. The change brought me into a completely new world. I, who had never worked in a bank or consultancy, was now surrounded by strategy consultants and bankers. It was intense. It was demanding, but it was exactly what I needed: I learned an extreme amount in a short space of time - and I enjoyed it!
Click on the picture on the left now and watch Arthur's video!
When questions lead to leadership
My first project was for the operating company then known as Heraeus Conamic. “Take a look at their new strategy process and coordinate it,” they said. That was the moment when I not only had to test my new skills, but also develop my own approach. How do you understand a market you haven't been active in before? How do you build up expertise when you don't yet have a deep network in the industry? And above all: how do you put all of this into a strategy that is not only analytically coherent, but also convinces the decision-makers?
I systematically set to work. I asked myself the big questions of what information is really crucial, which experts I can approach in the group and how I can access technical knowledge. My department head supported me as a sparring partner, but of course the actual work was up to me. So I worked intensively with methods such as the Five Forces, both in theory and directly in practice. At the same time, I realized that strategy development goes far beyond figures and analyses. It's about communication. Stakeholder management was a huge learning curve: What do decision-makers really need? Is a PowerPoint slide enough or do I have to explain more complex relationships?
Stronger through exchange
I still use the toolkit and the notes from that time today. But I also experienced how valuable it is to exchange ideas with colleagues. These sparring sessions, out-of-the-box thinking and the courage to take new approaches have shaped my path.”
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